Apparatus for making chlorine



` 3 Sheets-Sheet 1. y J. A. JUST.

APPARATUS FOR MAKING GHLORINE. No. 891,158.. 'f Patented Oct. 16, 1888.

(No Model.) 3 sheetssheet 2.

J. A. JUST.

. APPARATUS PoR MAKING CHLORINE. No. 391,158. Patented-Oct. 16, 1888;//

n. Ferias vhnwmrmgmn". wa-hingm n. c;

(No Model.) 3 Sheets- Sheet 3.

J. A. JUST.

APPARATUS PoR MAKING GELORINE. No. 391,158. Patented Oct. 16, 1888./

@mika/meow, 5WD@ {oz/ UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE..

JOHN A. JUST, OFSYRAOUSE, NEW YORK.

APPARATUS FOR MAKING CHLORINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 391,158, dated October 16, 1888.

Serial No. 270,708. (No model.)

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN A. JUST, of Syraeuse, in the county of Onondaga, in the State of New York, have invented new and useful Improvements in Apparatus for Making Chlorine, of which the following, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a full, clear, and exact description.

rlhis invention relates to an improvement in apparatus for making chlorine; and it consists in certain novel details of the construction and arrangement of the same, substantially as will -be hereinafter more fully set forth, and more specifically pointed out in the claims.

In order to enable others skilled in the art to which my invention pertains to make and use the same, I will now proceed to describe its construction and operation, referring to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a diagram viewof a plant arranged as I shall describe. Fig. 2 is a transverse section of a part of the plant used for re' covering the manganese dioXideand nitric acid, partof the devices appearingin elevation. Fig. 3 is an enlarged detail section ofone ofthe stills or generators, showing its connections to the different pipe systems, and also the manner of operating the siphon. Fig. et is a section taken longitudinally through the washer. Fig. 5 is a detail plan view of the trap into which the lowerend ofthesiphon is received,and through which the residue liquor is entered to the drain and conducted to the cistern or well; and Fig. G is a detail cross-section of the pan placed over the furnace to separate the constituents of the residue liquor and recover the manganese dioxide.

In the manufacture of chlorine on a large scale, commercially, a number of stills or generators are required, and asI desire in this apparatus to so arrange the parts that the process of manufacture shall be practically continuous and there will be a continuous charging of the stills, recovery of the ingredients, and immediate reuse of the same, I have arranged my stills or generators in a series of rows or batteries connected with the charging and recovery devices by a series of pipe systems arranged, as shown, to be out ofthe way of the operators and attendants in their work,

but in perfect position to best carry on the work continuously, as will be now described fully and in detail.

I use any desired and suitable number of stills in the formation of a battery, the series forming each batterybeing placed in a trough, a, preferably of wood, lined with sheet-lead of requisite strength, as clearly indicated at a', and in the bottom ofthe trough I place acoil of `steam-pipes, a2, for heating the stills, as will be hereinafter more fully explained.

Each still or generator consists of an earthenware vessel, b, of suitable size and forin,which vessel is provided with a removable cap or cover, b, the rim of which tits into a groove, b2, in the top of the still, and this groove is filled with water or other-liquid to form a seal, into which the rim of the cover is received,

and the admission of air or escape of gas around the edges of the cover is thus effectually prevented,while the cover is readily removed or replaced as it becomes necessaryiu the Working of the apparatus.

Upon one side of the still, in its side wall, is formed a passage, c, the lower end of which opens inwaidly to the interior of the still at or near its bot-tom, while the upper end of said passage opens outwardly through the sideof the still at a suitable height, and to this opening is secured a section of rubber tubing, c', connected to a glass tube, ci, which latter'is extended downward and opens into a trap, c3, seated upon the drain system, which carries off the residue liquor after the charge in a still is fully worked. All this will be fully seen iu Figs. l and 3.

The passage in the side of the still, together with the rubber and glass connections,fornis a siphon for draining thc still of its residue liquor, and this siphon is started and operated by a simple contrivance, (shownin Fig. 3,) as follows: Above and at one side ofthe still I secure two shelves, d d, one above the other. Upon the upper shelf is a pair of air-tight jars, d', containing liquiddsuch as waterwhich partially fills them, and connected by a flexible tube, di, as shown. One of the jars is also connected by a rubber tube, d, wit-h thc siphon and provided with any suitable compress, d". Vhen the siphon is to be started, the second jar is lowered to the lower of the two shelves and the compress d* is loosened.

IOO

This at once causes the liquid in the upper jar, d', to flow into the lower one and draws the air out of the siphon till the residue liquor rises in the passage c and flows over through the rubber and glass tubes. As soon as this flow is started the compress is tightened, the second jar returned to its place on the upper shelf, and the si phon continues to draw off the residue liquor from the still to the drain till all has been exhausted'and the still is empty. This forms a very efficient mode of emptying the stills, which needs little attention, and is automatic in its action after having been started.

Itis evident that a glass tube may be used upon the inside ofthe still to take the'place of the passage c; but I prefer the form described with this passage formed in the still-body, as shown. It will be understood that each still of the battery is provided with its own si phon connected to the drain exactly as has just been described.

Within the still is placed a perforated` vessel, c, to receive and hold a portion of the u charge, andthe top or upper part of the still is upon one side of its central opening provided wiith a nozzle, c', for the escape' of the chlorine gas7 'which nozzle is connected to a gas-conducting system, presently described.

Upon the opposite side of the central opening the still-top is provided with another opening, e2, which is formed with a grooved flange, e3, in which rests a cover, e, having its rim on its lower edge notched out, as shown, and this forms an inlet for the reception of the acid charge which flows under the notched edge of the cover, and so enters the still, sufficient always remaining in the groove to form a seal to the cover in the same manner as described for the main cover of the still, and so prevent the gas from escaping as it forms therein, except by the opening provided for it.

In a plant of any size the batteries are arranged in parallel rows, as in Fig. 1, with suficient space left between them for the free and convenient passage of the Workmen and attendants; and at a convenient point I construct,in the ordinary way, of stone and cement7 a tank or cistern, f, for the reception of the residue liquor left in the stillsl after the working of a charge, which liquor contains certain elements which it is necessary to recover, and must therefore be saved till subj ected to the recovery process. From this cistern a main drain, f', is laid (preferably underground, so as to be out of the way) past the ends of the batteries of the plant, and ofcourse withian inclination toward the cistern, so the liquor may run freely through it.' Connected to this main drain are a series of branch mains, f 2, which are extended laterally alongside of the series of batteries, and in each 0f these branches, at proper intervals, is inserted a trap, c, as best shown in Figs. 3 and 6. Thesetraps simply consist of small cups suspended by lugs in openings of the drain, and

their object is to retain sufcientliquid to seal A the lower ends of the siphons which rest in them. Each trap is by a siphon such as I have already described connected to one of the stills of the battery, and thus when these siphons are started the residue liquor contained in the stills is automatically drawn oif and flows readily through the branch and main drains to the cisterm These mains and the cistern are clearly shown by dotted lines in Fig. l, and their location and operation will be clearly understood.

The acids used in the manufacture by my process are two in number-viz., hydrochloric acid and nitric acid. These are contained in a divided receptacle, g, conveniently located, and each provided with a draw-off cock which empties into the open ends of a Tg, connected to an acid-main,g2, which is extended down past the ends of the batteries, as in Fig. l, inclining away from the acid-receptacle to give a free ilow of the same, and this acid-main is also provided with a series of branches, g3, extending laterally past the stills of the batteries. These branch and main pipes are connected by two-way cocks, so that the whole ilow of acid may be directed from the main into any particular branch at pleasure, and each branch is'provided also with a series of dischargecocks, g4, corresponding to the number of stills on the line,and.these discharge-cocks convey the acids to the receiving-openings of the stills. In the charging of the stills it is always advisable to begin with the still nearest the main acid-pipe and charge them consecutively, as it is thereby possible to drain out all the acid in the pipes at the charging of the last still of the series or battery. This is a matter of advantage in practice that will be at` once clearly seen. lt will be noted that the arrangement f the acid supply system being above the stills is out of the way of the attendants and does not interfere with them in their duties, and that the connections to the stills are such that any one or all of the stills are charged at pleasure, and thus each still is'under independent control and can bc Worked separately from the rest of the battery.

Alongside of each line of stills orv batteries, and above the same, out of the way, is also arranged a branch gas-pipe, 7i, to which the gas outlet of each still is connected by a pipe, It', of lead or material to resist the action of the chlorine. These pipes h', as seen in Fig. 3, are preferably carried above the gas-pipe h and connected thereto by a bend, in order that the moisture which may be carried into thepipe by the gas shall not be drained back into the stills, but shall run through the gas system to the washer, where it can do no harm. These gas branch pipes all connect with a main gasconductor', h,which is connected to a washer, i, as in Figs. 1 and 4, in which the gas is forced to spread out, and passes over the surface of water, as illustrated. From thence the gasroo IIO

conductor is led off to its connection with the chloride-of-lime chambers t" at any convenient point.

Some of the ingredients used in the manufacture of the chlorine are to be recovered from the residue liquor for reuse, and t0 accomplish this I use the devices as follows: A furnace, k, of any suitable size and economical form and construction, is located conveniently, and over it is set a shallow pan, c, closed in, as shown in Fig. 2. In this pan I place the residue liquor from the cistern and apply heat from the furnace at a slowly-rising temperature till the maximum heat is obtained for the purpose intended. The closed pan is connected by a pipe, k?, with a condensing-tower, k, provided with an air-inlet, r, near its lower end. \Vithin the tower are arranged aseries ofshelves,fln,`ntwing openings arranged therein at alternate sides, and in the upper part of the tower is provided ajet or spray of water, as at m, which flows down over the shelves through their zigzag openings to the bottom. A series of condensing-jars, m2, are provided, connected together by pipes m3 and siphons mf, and the upper end ofthe condenssing-tower 7c3 is connected by a pipe, n, with the first one of the series of condensing-jars, this pipe passing through an intermediate cooler, n', as clearly seen in Fig. 2. Thelower end of the tower is also connected by a glass tube, a2, with the last jar of the series, as,

clearly illustrated. From the last jar of the condensing series a pipe, 0, extends to a second tower, o,also provided with a waterjet orspray, and having from its lowerend a glass tube, o?, for conducting the slightly-acid water back to the last jar, as shown.

Vhen the heat is applied in the furnace,the residue liquor is caused to throw off one of its ingredients in nitrous vapors and the other is finally left solidly in the pan in the form of pure manganese dioxide. The nitrous vapors pass od through the proper connections to the tower k3, where they are mixed with air, and rise over the shelves through the tower, and are cooled and greatly condensed by contact with the water iiowing down. The condensed vapors, forming weak acid, are carried from the bottom of the tower to the last jar of the condensing series, and are caused to travel through the series toward the first jar. The uncondensed vapors and cornmingled air pass off at the top of the tower through the pipe y n to the iirst of the series of jars and pass on through the series, subject to contact with and in the opposite direction to the acid-water.

Should any uncondensed vapors remain on reaching the end of the series ofjars, they pass on to the second tower, and are there thoroughly condensed and returned to the end of the series, as shown. Thus I obtain a perfect recovery of both the ingredients contained in the residue liquor, and reuse them in again charging the batteries, effecting a considerable economy in practice and making the process of manufacture by the peculiar arrangement of the plant practically continuous, and it is not necessary to check the work while cleaning and recharging the stills.

The advantages of this arrangement of the plantwill beobvious. It can not only be worked in whole or in part, according to the demand for the product, but it is very cheaply and quickly enlarged at any time by simply extending the pipe and drain systems and adding another battery, or by adding lnore stills to the batteries already in use and extending their size. The arrangement is also compact, and in such form as to permit the work to be done automatically and under perfect control.

I have named herein as the ingredients used in the apparatus nitric acid,hydrochloric acid, and manganese dioxide, because these form the ingredients used in a process for which I have applied foraseparate pateutof even date herewith, and this apparatus is the one I prefer to use in carrying ont said process; but I do not desire to be understood as in any way confining myself thereto, as other processes and combinations ofingredients may beworked and recovered in this apparatus with equal facility.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

l. The combination, with a series of stills arranged in batteries, of an acidsupply tank provided with a system of distributing-pipes separately connected to each still, a system of drain-pipes also connected to each still and to a cistern,and a system of gaspipes separately connected to each still and led through a washer to the desired point, all constructed and arranged to operate substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

2. The co1nbination,with a drain system and a cistern to which it leads, said drain being provided with a series of traps at proper points, of a series of stills each connected to one of the traps by a Siphon, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

3. The combination, with a still provided with a siphon for emptying it, of a drain sys` tem, ffl, provided with the cup-shaped traps f3, for holding liquid, in which the end of the siphon is sealed, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

4. The combination, with a still provided with a siphon for draining off the liquid residue after operation, of a pair of shelves, one above the other, a pair of liquid-vessels connected by a siphon pipe and one of them adapted for removal from the upper shelf to the lower and back, and a pipe connecting the other vessel with the still-Siphon and provided with a compressoock, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

5. 'Ihe combination, with the condensingtower and the series of connected condensingjars, of a pipe for the vapors connecting the upper part of the tower with the first jar of the series, and a second pipe for the acidwater connecting the bottom of the tower with IIO IIS

my name, in the presence of bwo abtesting witro nesses, ab Syracuse, in bhe county of Onondaga, in the State of New York, this 10th day of April, 1888.

JOHN A. JUST.

Witnesses:

W. C. MOARTHUR, FREDERICK H. GIBBs. 

